OCC Narrows Potential Coaches to 3 Finalists

Edison High School Coach Bill Workman, Cal State Long Beach defensive coordinator Ken Visser and Rancho Santiago College defensive coordinator Ben Rapp are the three finalists for the vacant Orange Coast College head football coaching job.

The finalists were informed by the selection committee last Friday that they would receive a final interview Wednesday. The school is expected to announce a replacement for retired Coach Dick Tucker Friday with the replacement to be approved by the college board March 19.

Workman, 44, has established Edison as one of the top prep football programs in the state during the past 13 seasons. The Chargers are 108-33-5 under Workman and have won seven Sunset League titles.

Edison won its third Big Five Conference title last fall, tying Long Beach Poly, 14-14, at Anaheim Stadium to finish the season 10-2-1.

“It’s a job I would like to have, but I figure I can’t lose with the situation I have at Edison,” Workman said. “I’m sure they’ll pick who they think is the best man for the job.”

Visser, 39, has been an assistant at Cal State Long Beach for seven seasons, serving as the 49ers’ defensive coordinator for the past five seasons. He previously was head coach at Servite High in Anaheim for five seasons and also served as the school’s athletic director.

Servite was 37-11-4 during Visser’s reign, winning 23 games by shutout. He started for two seasons at Orange Coast, playing on the Pirates’ Junior Rose Bowl championship team in 1963.

Three years ago, he was named the head coach at the University of Redlands, but declined the position to remain on the 49er staff when Mike Sheppard was named coach. He also applied for the head coaching job at Northern Colorado, but later withdrew his application.

“I think Orange Coast is an ideal job because of the location and the facilities,” Visser said.

Rapp, 42, has been defensive coordinator at Rancho Santiago for 13 seasons. He took a sabbatical from the school in 1984 to serve as an assistant at USC. He joined Rancho Santiago in 1972 after three years as an assistant at Huntington Beach High.

He has tried unsuccessfully to become the head coach at Rancho Santiago three times, becoming a finalist when current Coach Dave Ogas was named the Dons’ coach in 1982.

Rapp is also a former player at Orange Coast and later played with the British Columbia Lions in the Canadian Football League.

Among the candidates who did not receive a final interview were Dave Thompson of Marina and Mike Milner of Fountain Valley, two of the Sunset League’s most successful coaches.